16. Is this a potion?

It was a fierce battle, but much easier than expected.

If the horde of corpses were replaced by shadow wolves, the first great adventure at the boundary between the real and the virtual would now enter the teleportation guidance phase.

The group temporarily retreated to the large bathhouse to rest. Although it was clear there could be no more undead creations in this cleansing layer, no one knew what might lie in the unexplored half of the area.

Orange Tea had smoothly reached level 5 during the fight, the same level as Jiang Heyi and the others.

Original Fries still led the pack at level 7 by a wide margin.

In fact, many players, as they played, would forget that this game even had levels, or that level 20 was the maximum.

If it weren’t for Orange Tea cheerfully sharing her joy, none of them would have bothered checking their status panels.

In the Testament of the Stars, leveling up meant you could allocate an additional attribute point, equipping items that required certain level or attribute thresholds, or learning special skills.

Jiang Heyi examined the loot.

Although the corpse horde was large, there was little of value except for numerous Soul Shards.

According to the item description, these were basic materials for crafting undead-related tools.

“Fries, this is for you.”

[Clearwater Priest’s Dagger]

“Devotee, take this as your token and try to step into the boundless sea.”

This was a sacred relic, imbued with the Clearwater’s divine aura, having extraordinary effects against the undead. It was also the only purple-tier drop this round.

Since it was adaptive equipment, despite the level 10 requirement, Original Fries could equip it early, though its effects would be somewhat weakened.

Fries, who had just reached out to touch the glowing orb, suddenly paused.

“Aren’t you taking anything?”

All the [Clearwater] set items obtained in this round had been distributed, but Jiang Heyi declined every piece.

Having played multiple games, Jiang Heyi’s gear was still the most basic white tier. Although his skills were excellent with a high ceiling, having solid attributes and equipment always made the gameplay more comfortable.

“The numbers in this game aren’t that important,” Jiang Heyi smiled. “You go first, you go first.”

Fries hesitated briefly but no longer refused.

After resting for a while, the group set out again.

They continued along the original path. This time, no corpse horde appeared to block their way, confirming Jiang Heyi’s guess that monsters within the temple did not respawn repeatedly.

Passing through the Guide’s Temple, they walked toward the Garden of the Prayer Hall, where the Clearwaters washed away the dust from their hearts. Suddenly, the Jailor stopped, glancing back along their path.

“What’s wrong?”

“Uh… You’re not mages, so it’s a bit hard to explain.” The Jailor furrowed his brow, still staring at the brightly lit path behind them. “Magic is everywhere; mages are like fish swimming in it. Just now… I felt the flow became somewhat chaotic.”

“We didn’t see anything along the way,” Zhong Zemo said, approaching the Jailor.

“Unknown Revelation,” Jiang Heyi said.

When in doubt, consult Orange Tea.

“No response.”

No response was the norm for Unknown Revelation. Orange Tea had only just experienced a failed attempt, which was already remarkably lucky.

“The flow is turbulent.” The Jailor, who had been sensing with closed eyes, suddenly opened them wide. “It’s coming, rushing toward us…”

“Boom!”

Zhong Zemo’s giant shield was struck by an invisible force, denting and cracking it. The impact sent him flying. Mid-air, his shield dissolved into blue light particles.

This was the effect of equipment worn to the extreme limit of durability—once broken, it could no longer be used.

One strike shattered it.

Zhong Zemo knocked over the Jailor, both tumbling through the colorful flower sea of the garden, leaving a “scar” behind.

In the critical moment, Orange Tea activated a blessing shield to protect them both. Seeing the two hurtling toward her, she instinctively tried to catch them barehanded but was slammed directly, rolling into a tangled heap.

Dizzy, the Jailor shouted urgently, “There’s a monster!”

Jiang Heyi also knew there was something, but where was it?

Original Fries equipped the newly acquired priest’s dagger and took a deep breath. “Now that I look, this place feels a bit like…”

“Like accidentally stumbling into a mid-boss room, right?” Jiang Heyi, also tense facing an unseen enemy, spoke out to relieve some pressure.

This was the mid-section connecting the Great Bathhouse of the Guide’s Temple to the Prayer Hall, an open courtyard probably designed to allow bathers to get close to nature and relax both body and mind. Countless flowers bloomed here, with trees shading the four corners against the walls.

The multicolored blossoms competed in beauty, and each corner of the courtyard had a resting area with stone tables.

Upon arrival, they couldn’t help but admire the Clearwaters’ beautiful “work environment.” After the earlier corpse horde battle, seeing this scene felt like a healing balm for body and mind.

“I think…”

“Clang!”

Original Fries hadn’t finished her sentence before instinctively raising the priest’s dagger and making contact with the invisible enemy.

Purely reflexive, her body reacted first, as if a voice warned her danger was imminent.

Caught off guard and unable to resist, she was completely slammed away by the monstrous force.

Struggling to stand, the Jailor once again played the key role, precisely casting a shield on Fries the instant she took flight.

This monster moved rapidly through the flower sea, stirring the blossoms and petals in the wind. But why did only the final contact of Fries’ attack raise a gust?

What were they actually fighting?

“The magic flow is chaotic again. Its movements destabilize the mana…”

“I’m a martial artist. Talking to me about mana? I can’t feel anything!”

“Unknown Revelation is ready again. I’ll use it…”

Orange Tea was suddenly lifted into the air like a chick, then blood mist exploded.

The flower sea in the courtyard was drenched in a crimson rain.

Flavor Orange Tea was down.

Original Fries recovered from dizziness, seeming to sense something, and shouted to Jiang Heyi, “It has a solid…”

Invisible hands struck Fries’ abdomen, sending her hurtling toward a distant wall.

A dull thud followed, leaving only a bloodied “corpse” there.

Original Fries was down.

Death here seemed to prevent comrades from sending messages. Now no one knew what she had tried to say.

In an instant, the Jailor was pierced by a downward attack, becoming the third casualty.

Within a short time, only Jiang Heyi and Zhong Zemo remained alive.

“Wait… why haven’t I been attacked?”

The chaotic mind calmed the moment this question arose.

Jiang Heyi whispered, inspired, opening his control panel and sending a message.

“Don’t move.”

Zhong Zemo, overwhelmed by the sudden chain of events and somewhat dazed, instantly understood when he saw the words floating above Jiang Heyi’s head.

“Does it only have dynamic vision?”

“Maybe.”

“But the Jailor didn’t move either.”

“Remember what the Jailor said?”

“Traces of mana flow… this thing is hypersensitive to magic!”

“What now? We can’t just stand still.”

“Moving means death, but staying still is the same,” Zhong Zemo said.

“First, we have to find a way to see its true form,” Jiang Heyi messaged. “Fries, before she died, must have wanted to tell me she saw the monster’s body. It’s not intangible.”

“How do we see it?”

“Light,” Jiang Heyi concluded. “Fries used the Clearwater Priest’s Dagger to block the attack, and the dagger itself has a light attribute… probably that’s it.”

“In that case, I’ll draw its attention,” Zhong Zemo took a deep breath. “Let me blast its coins hard!”

Jiang Heyi pulled out a special potion he had purchased from the witch who sold the [Inferior Flame Potion].

[Unstable Combustion Potion], Attribute: Light

“The creator of this formula did not think about burning, but about exploding. Whether it qualifies as a potion depends on the alchemist's ‘ambition.’”

When selling it, the witch confidently claimed this potion contained enough “ambition” to be her masterpiece.

Jiang Heyi had scornfully put it back on the stall, only to see the witch instantly change her expression, begging him to buy one, since at least it was a rare light attribute magic potion…

Recalling her dramatic flip-flop, Jiang Heyi couldn’t help but grumble inwardly.

“What a shameless witch.”

Hopefully, the potion wouldn’t disappoint.

He typed a message.

“Start countdown.”

“Three…”

“Two…”

“One!” Jiang Heyi shouted.

Almost instantly, a chill swept over him, like being watched by a wild beast in a jungle, a strong unease coursing like electricity through his body.

It came fast and went fast. The moment Zhong Zemo started running, the chill vanished.

Jiang Heyi didn’t hesitate, pulling out all the potions he had bought from the witch.

Zhong Zemo’s body was restrained by invisible force and suddenly “lifted” into the air.

The monster’s position was exposed, and Jiang Heyi hurled the embarrassing witch’s [Unstable Combustion Potion].

He wanted to see why this combustion potion was light attribute.

If it didn’t work, even if she was a cute NPC, he would overturn her stall!

The Unstable Combustion Potion spun in mid-air, the mercury-like liquid inside swirling violently.

Zhong Zemo burst into a mist of blood, and the glass bottle simultaneously emitted a dazzling white light.

Light, like spilled mercury, flooded every corner of the courtyard.

In that instant, Jiang Heyi saw the entire hidden form of the invisible monster.

The next moment…

The huge blast wave from the explosion threw Jiang Heyi ten meters away, pushing him into the air and hurling him far off.

“Damn… is this really a magic potion?”